PRINTER, KY - JUNE 3: Coal hoppers sit coupled on a spur track in front of a coal tower at Blackhawk Mining, LLC Spurlock Prep Plant on June 3, 2014 in Printer, Kentucky. New regulations on carbon emissions proposed by the Obama administration have reportedly angered politicians on both sides of the aisle in energy-producing states such as Kentucky and West Virginia. (Photo by Luke Sharrett/Getty Images)

Former Foes Unite to Fight Trump Coal, Nuclear Bailout

Green power producers are standing shoulder to should with oil and gas companies as they push back against Trump administration plans to boost coal-burning electric plants and nuclear generation, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“The plan would effectively guarantee profits for some nuclear and coal-fired power plants, prompting critics that also include former federal regulators to call it a bailout for struggling plants that undermines competitive markets,” the Journal reported.

“The Trump administration, in its proposal late last month, asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to implement market reforms to better reward power plants that can continue running in extreme weather, during attacks or other crises,” the newspaper wrote.

Several utilities, including Exelon, and some prominent industry groups, like the American Petroleum Institute, are concerned that the federal bailout may go too far, the Journalsaid.

The newspaper quoted Paul Cicio, president of the Industrial Energy Consumers of America, as saying: “The proposal is anticompetitive and if implemented, it would distort, if not destroy, competitive wholesale electricity markets, increase the price of electricity to all consumers, and directly impact negatively the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturing.”